The Ultimate Barbecued Chicken

Ok, so I know it's not summer yet, but it doesn't
mean you can't barbecue!  So, I am NOT a barbecue sauce fan at all!!  With Mike coming from Texas and me from Connecticut, we do clash
on our foods likes sometimes.
Mike loves barbecue and I only eat it if that's all there is to eat.  But, since making this recipe, I will eat this one. The chicken is super moist from the brine, the chicken is cooked in the over with the sauce, making the sauce smooth and sweet, rather than sticky and crunchy from the grill.   The chicken is cooked on the grill first, to get the nice grill marks, but then transferred to the oven for cooking and basting.  Mike is thrilled that I have found at least one recipe that I will eat when he has a craving for good old barbecue sauce.  I have to cook him at least one thing he loves besides meatloaf!
So the moral of this story, if you don't like something, just try it a different way.  Hope you enjoy these as much as did!


The Ultimate Barbecued Chicken

www.foodnetwork.com

Ingredients
Brine:
2 quarts water
2 tablespoons kosher salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 garlic cloves, smashed with the side of a large knife
4 sprigs fresh thyme
6 chicken legs and thighs, still connected, bone in, skin on, about 10 ounces each

Barbecue sauce

Directions

For the brine, in a mixing bowl combine the water, salt, sugar, garlic, and thyme. Transfer the brine to a 2-gallon sized re-sealable plastic bag. Add the chicken, close the bag and refrigerate 2 hours (if you've only got 15 minutes, that's fine) to allow the salt and seasonings to penetrate the chicken.

Preheat oven 375 degrees F.

Preheat a grill pan or an outdoor gas or charcoal barbecue to a medium heat. Take a few paper towels and fold them several times to make a thick square. Blot a small amount of oil on the paper towel and carefully and quickly wipe the hot grates of the grill to make a nonstick surface. Take the chicken out of the brine, pat it dry on paper towels. Arrange the chicken pieces on the preheated grill and cook, turn once mid-way, and cook for a total of 10 minutes. Transfer the grill marked chicken to a cookie sheet and then place in the oven. Cook the chicken for 15 minutes, remove it from the oven and then brush liberally, coating every inch of the legs with the barbecue sauce and then return to the oven for 25 to 30 more minutes, basting the chicken for a second time half way through remaining cooking time. Serve with extra sauce.